Biblical Worldview by Brad Huddleston

Actually, there are a number of things wrong in the United States, but the title of this article, Biblical Worldview, is what I’m obviously addressing. Back in 2009, the Barna Research Group conducted a national survey in an effort to determine how many Americans have a biblical worldview (also known as Christian worldview). In their survey, they defined “biblical worldview” as:

…believing that absolute moral truth exists; the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches; Satan is considered to be a real being or force, not merely symbolic; a person cannot earn their way into Heaven by trying to be good or do good works; Jesus Christ lived a sinless life on earth; and God is the all-knowing, all-powerful creator of the world who still rules the universe today.1

I would expect a country such as Australia, France, or Canada to have dismal results but what Barna discovered here in the US, a country often referred to as a “Christian Nation,” was shocking. The survey revealed that only 9% of all American adults have a biblical world view.2 This is 2017 and I wonder what the survey would reveal today.

I am very privileged to travel across the globe speaking in private and public schools. I have a vested interest in speaking in American Christian schools and encouraging a biblical world view. I live here and want to see revival. I believe our Christian schools hold one of the major keys if we are going to have another Great Awakening.

Sadly, there are many Christian schools who are not intentional about propagating such a world view. Please do not misunderstand me. I am a huge fan of our Christian schools and am extremely thankful for the thousands of born again principals, teachers, and administrators, who often make great financial sacrifice to make it possible to have a such a school in their area.

While I do not think for a second that our Christian schools are purposely abandoning the faith, I do think many are giving in to pressures from parents and the secular education system. For example, instead of holding firmly to core Biblical doctrines such a literal 6-day Creation, many are teaching evolution, thinking that they are better preparing their students for entry into secular Universities.

Turning Things Around

As I travel around this great country speaking, I am encouraged and honored to be associated with many great Christian education organizations including ACTS (Association of Christian Teachers and Schools) and Renewanation. Renewanation has an incredible, God-given vision:

To see culture transformed by giving millions of children a biblical worldview education. By 2020, we plan to have 100,000 children enrolled in biblical worldview training programs.3

There are a number of great publishers offering Christian Curriculum for schools and homeschoolers. For example, I just got off the phone with my friend Steve Curtis, who is a Precept/BJU Press Territory Manager. I asked him to comment on BJU Press’ definition of biblical worldview:

Everyone has a worldview. Our passion is to help young people view the world through the corrective lens of God’s Word. Understanding, personalizing, and living out the one story of God’s Word – Creation, Fall, and Redemption through Jesus Christ – makes all the difference!

Many Christians believe the recent Presidential election has given America a reprieve from the downward spiral we have been experiencing for many years. If that is true, we still can’t let our guard down; especially when it comes to our current generation of students.

In his inaugural address in January of 1967, Governor Ronald Reagan famously said:

Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than a generation away from extinction.4

Unintended Consequences by Renee Griffith

Have you ever started a journey only to wind up in a place you did not intend? During one family vacation, I traveled Interstate 40 thinking my destination was west. A few hours later, when my husband woke up, he was surprised that we were actually further from our destination than when we began. Sometimes, in our journey through life, we get rerouted and our best laid plans have unintended consequences. Unintended consequences are often discovered only after you have traveled far from your original destination.

I was working with an 8th grade student on a math problem. Because I work in a Christian school, many math word problems use information from the Bible. The student was asked to identify if Psalms, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes were a subset of the New Testament. The student was stumped and asked for assistance. I asked this young man, “Are these books of the Bible located in the Old or the New Testament?” He looked at me and said, “I don’t know.” His answer shocked me. How could a student attend a Christian school and not recognize the placement of these books in the Bible?

As I spent time pondering this topic, I realized we had implemented a strategy which resulted in unintended consequences. For the last several years, we allowed students to look up Scripture verses on handheld electronic devices. This seemed to help the student finish Bible work much faster. However, herein an unintended consequence lay. When a student searched a Bible verse on an electronic device, only the verse they requested was viewed. The student had no frame of reference regarding this verse in context to other verses, chapters, as well as the context of the book against other books of the Bible.

Each month our students memorize a chapter of the Bible. To make this easier, we print the chapter and allow them to study from this page. Again, our attempt to make things easier for the students had unintended consequences. The students were no longer finding this passage of Scripture in a Bible. In an attempt to speed completion of work, students bypassed very important critical and higher thinking skills. Imagine the wealth of information gained by knowing the placement of Psalms in the Old Testament. A student recognizes the book was written before Jesus was born. This student was unable to tell if Psalms was written before or after Christ.

It wasn’t long until I discovered another unintended consequence. A 5th grade student was asked to identify which words would be on a dictionary page based on guide words listed at the top of the dictionary page. Imagine my surprise when the student could not understand how to identify these words! Around the same time students were allowed to use electronic devices to find Bible passages, they were allowed to use the same devices for dictionary work. Many critical and higher thinking skills such as sequential order, reasoning, and logical word placement were sacrificed for convenience.

Since these revelations, the school has revised our technology policy. Students are no longer allowed to have access to these devices. Already positive outcomes are seen since revising this policy. As an educator, I do not want my best laid plans to have devastating, unintended consequences.

Renee Griffith is the principal of Cornerstone Christian Academy which she and her husband founded 24 years ago. They have four children, Caleb 24, Christian 21, CJ 9, and Cadence 4. They have been foster parents to 45 children, the last one, Cadence, they adopted! Renee is passionate about children and their education. She spends her free time shooting competitive archery and coaching children in the sport. She has finished her first year of the MBA. She is the worship pastor at her church.

Renee and her husband Bobby.

Brad Huddleston Ministries is truly a national and global outreach. We realize that not everyone who might want to contribute financially can attend. For those who would like to support us with either a one-time gift or on a monthly basis, you can do so online by clicking here. Thank you!

Table Sponsorship

There is no cost to attend the 8th Annual Brad Huddleston Ministries fundraising banquet. The meal is on us as well. If you would like to help offset expenses by sponsoring a table of 6 for $140, you can do so by clicking here. Thank you!

Register Now!

By God's grace, our annual banquet attendance continues to amaze us. The Lord is clearly surrounding us with like-minded people who love God, honor His Word, are committed to prayer and hunger for revival not only around the world, but here in the US and Shenandoah Valley.

There are many facets to revival but one common denominator in all revival is repentance. The message that God has given Brad has to do a modern idol called technology. For all of the good that technology has brought us, there is an addictive and darker side. This year we will celebrate all that God is doing around the world with both the Digital Cocaine: A Journey Toward iBalance book and DVD.

Our worship will once again be provided by Calvary Assembly in Staunton, VA. The anointing of God's Spirit on this team is something special to be experienced. Beth and I truly believe that God has something special to say to all of those who attend through our Pastor, Jeff Ferguson. You also don't want to miss out on the wonderful meal and fellowship!

If you have received an RSVP in the mail, please consider returning it right away. Alternatively, you can register online by clicking here. We look forward to seeing you on April 1!

Brand New Resource To Combat Pornography

Porneia is the Greek word for "pornography" that appears 26 times in the New Testament. Pornography is out of control around the world and growing. Younger and younger children are becoming addicted. We are long overdue to do something about this. This 5-part video series was shot in South Africa and was a year in production. This resource is not only geared toward the individual, but for small groups and anyone wanting training and equipping in dealing with this issue. You can order your DVD series by clicking here.

I was recently interviewed on the Vision Christian Radio about this new series. Vision Christian Radio serves the entire nation of Australia with hundreds of stations as well as online streaming globally. I invite you to listen and share this.